Report: Rockets target Sixers in potential trade involving center Omer Asik
The Houston Rockets are shopping guard Jeremy Lin and center Omer Asik in potential trades with other teams and the Rockets have targeted the Sixers as a partner for Asik, according to CBS Sports' Ken Berger.
The Houston Rockets are shopping guard Jeremy Lin and center Omer Asik in potential trades with other teams and the Rockets have targeted the Sixers as a partner for Asik, according to CBS Sports' Ken Berger.
Any possible trade would be dependent upon Houston landing free agent center Dwight Howard, writes Berger:
"If the Rockets land Howard, Asik would become expendable. One potential destination that rival executives have identified is Philadelphia, where former Rockets executive Sam Hinkie is the Sixers' new general manager.
Hinkie was part of the Houston front office that scored both Asik and Lin with backloaded offer sheets as restricted free agents last summer. If the Knicks (Lin) and Bulls (Asik) had chosen to match the respective offer sheets, they would've had to structure their deals with $15 million "balloon" payments in the third year. But the Rockets only needed to account for the average of the three-year, $25.1 million deals -- $8.375 million per year, a manageable number for a starting center and point guard, respectively."
Asik, a 7-foot, 255-pound center, has played three seasons after being selected in the second round of the 2008 NBA Draft by the Portland Trail Blazers.
He played limited minutes off the bench for the Chicago Bulls in his first two seasons.
After signing with the Rockets, Asik started every game in the 2012-13 season, averaging 10.1 points and 11.7 rebounds per game.